The Snowflake Dessert House is just one of the many eateries at the 11-acre Pacific Pearl complex in Pleasanton.

Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group

The 11-acre Pacific Pearl is making a serious push as a destination for Asian cuisine, from novelty desserts to delicious ramen, seafood, Korean barbecue, Vietnamese fare and plenty more.

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Gary Reyes/ Bay Area News Group File

A Jinya Ramen Bar opened in Pleasanton this fall. It's the second Bay Area outpost for the Tokyo-based ramen shop whose menu includes dishes such as Tonkotsu Black Ramen.

Gary Reyes/ Bay Area News Group File

A bowl of spicy chicken ramen is served at the Jinya Ramen Bar at Westfield Oakridge mall in San Jose.

Gary Reyes/ Bay Area News Group File

Soup bowls line the counters at the Jinya Ramen Bar at Westfield Oakridge mall in San Jose.

Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group

Mango Delight pastries are photographed at 85ºC Bakery Cafe at the new Pacific Pearl shopping center in Pleasanton, Calif., on Wednesday, July 18, 2018. The new shopping center, located at the corner of Stoneridge Drive and El Charro Road, features shops, restaurants and a 99 Ranch Market. Pacific Pearl's grand opening will be held on Saturday, July 21, from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. (Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group)

Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group

Pastries are photographed at 85ºC Bakery Cafe at the new Pacific Pearl shopping center in Pleasanton, Calif., on Wednesday, July 18, 2018. The new shopping center, located at the corner of Stoneridge Drive and El Charro Road, features shops, restaurants and a 99 Ranch Market. Pacific Pearl's grand opening will be held on Saturday, July 21, from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. (Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group)

Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group

The 85ºC Bakery Cafe and other shops are photographed at the new Pacific Pearl shopping center in Pleasanton, Calif., on Wednesday, July 18, 2018. The new shopping center, located at the corner of Stoneridge Drive and El Charro Road, features shops, restaurants and a 99 Ranch Market. Pacific Pearl's grand opening will be held on Saturday, July 21, from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. (Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group)

Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group

The front of the 99 Ranch Market is photographed at the new Pacific Pearl shopping center in Pleasanton, Calif., on Wednesday, July 18, 2018. The new shopping center, located at the corner of Stoneridge Drive and El Charro Road, features a variety of shops and restaurants. Pacific Pearl's grand opening will be held on Saturday, July 21, from 12:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. (Doug Duran/Bay Area News Group)

A correction to an earlier version of this article has been appended to the end of the article.

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Pleasanton’s Pacific Pearl is a suburban shopping center, a foodie mecca and — depending on who you are and where you’re from — either a convenient one-stop shop for groceries and familiar restaurant fare, or an exotic cultural extravaganza with enough variety to keep you coming back to learn, explore and devour.

The 11-acre Pacific Pearl is making a serious push as a destination for Asian cuisine, from novelty desserts to delicious ramen, seafood, Korean barbecue, Vietnamese fare and plenty more. There are about a dozen eateries so far, and more set to open in the coming weeks.

Pulling into the large parking lot at one end of the U-shaped line-up of buildings, we plotted a simple exploration strategy – walk counter-clockwise and eat whatever caught our attention. We had 112,000 square feet of possibilities. And geographically, dessert was up first.

Snowflake Dessert House‘s artistic bowls are not quite ice cream and, with a creamier mouthfeel, not quite shaved ice, either. They’re essentially ice cream-style crepes with origins in Taiwan, colorful, sweet and very Instagram-worthy. This family-friendly spot has non-dairy options, too, so we went with the strawberry ice milk crepes, garnished with fresh strawberries and blueberries.

Snowflake also has a variety of savory dishes worth trying. The curry and rice plate was well made and balanced, with subtle peppery notes, a creamy, comforting mild curry sauce to pull it all together and your choice of meat. There’s a meatless option, too. The plate comes with a tiny, forgettable side salad and enough bread to mop up the curry sauce.

Next up: 99 Ranch Market, the Asian-centric grocery store that anchors the Pacific Pearl. This spacious market, for the uninitiated, doubles as a foodie education experience, with exotic fruits you may not have seen before, more kinds of bok choy than you knew existed, jars upon jars of fermented foods and plenty of surprises. We bought bunches of longan, which are shaped like grapes and require peeling. Inside, the fruit tastes much like lychee, with a small pit that is a beautiful burgundy hue.

As we walked out, I noticed the display of gourmet decorated cakes, but we were leaving room for another dessert stop in the far corner of the center. (Although on the way there, we couldn’t resist a bowl of steaming hot ramen on a chilly autumn afternoon.)

What’s most interesting about the 85 Degrees C bakery is how it functions for the customer. As soon as you walk in, grab a cafeteria-like tray and start hunting for your treats. Try the coconut twist, the lemon mint cake and cranberry cream cheese buns. Most of the desserts are $2 to $3. If you’re in a splurge frame of mind, the $14 Napoleon layer cake is an excellent offering of textures, flavors and sugar overload. For a savory option, get the barbecue sausage bun.

One of the most anticipated restaurants in the center, the very large King Wah Seafood Restaurant, promises to be a big hit, with décor that promises an upscale experience. And if you’re looking for a casual little foodie adventure, try the quirky and entertaining Kura Revolving Sushi Bar. Anyone who has visited Japan has likely seen these fast food-style sushi bars where the food is displayed on conveyor belts that transport the offerings around the room. See something you like, grab it.

Jinya Ramen Bar, the Tokyo-based ramen shop which opened its first Bay Area outpost last year in San Jose, has opened its second here, offering pork, chicken or veggie broth simmered for 10 hours to achieve its depth of flavors. If you’re under the weather, think of it as a supercharged chicken noodle soup.

We don’t give medical advice, but a big bowl of ramen and broth with some chile oil and you just have to feel good after slurping that down. Grab the chopsticks and spoon and have at it.

With full bellies, we return to our parking spot, but we’re already plotting our return trip. Maybe we’ll hit Fiery Shanghai and its hearty — and hot — spicy crawfish-loaded platter. But do we hit that before or after noshing fried chicken and bite-sized pieces of fish at Poke Moana?